As I race my dad up the creaky steps of the building, I can hear the footsteps of people’s brisk movement and their confident yells from behind the closed door. My heart is pounding from running, but also from excitement and anxiety.

I open the door and I see him. His bright orange robes. His perfect posture. His focused expression. I’ve only dreamed of seeing these things. Is it a dream? No. It’s really happening! It’s Shifu Shi Yan Ming!

Over Spring break, I had the incredible opportunity to go to the USA Shaolin Temple in Chinatown in New York City where I got to be trained by one of the best warriors in the whole world, Shifu Shi Yan Ming!

Ming’s parents were extremely poor, and by the time he was born, three of his older siblings had already died of starvation. By the time he was two or three, he got incredibly sick to the point where everyone thought he was dead. As his parents were about to throw him away (they couldn’t afford to bury him), a man asked them why they were so miserable. He was an acupuncturist, and asked if he could try and save him. Remarkably, he brought him back to life.

At the age of five, his parents brought him to the Shaolin Temple where he could be better taken care of. It was here he grew to be one of the best warriors in the world. Shifu came to America on the first ever Shaolin Temple Monk tour in 1992.

After the last performance, in the middle of the night, he slipped out of his hotel and escaped into the new world. He eventually founded the USA Shaolin Temple where he strives to share with the world the art of Shaolin Kung Fu.

During my training with him, I got to experience some of this beautiful art firsthand. We began by jogging up and down the room to loosen up while performing acrobatic jumps, several kinds of kicks, and much more. The whole time students would randomly yell out “More Chi!” in which the class would respond “Train harder!” It was very encouraging and kept everyone’s spirits up.

Then we did some intense full-body stretching. Shifu is so flexible, that he is able to kiss his toes with his legs straight. To his students, he is living proof of what hard work, discipline, and dedication can lead to.

After stretching, the class split up, and I was pulled aside for some personal instruction. I was taught a special form of the rising kick- a kick in which you swing your straight leg up and then slam it down. It is a dynamic stretch, but requires speed, strength, balance, and coordination.

Before the closing ceremony, we practiced physical conditioning. Shifu yelled out “push-ups!” and the class did as many as they could until he yelled out “sit ups.” People kept pushing harder and harder crying out “More chi! Train harder” until the next exercise was announced.

At the end of the class, Shifu complimented me on my work. He told me I was fantastic and have a lot of chi. He said I will be really good if I continue practicing and I will always cherish those words. Training with Shifu Shi Yan Ming is an incredible experience I will never forget.

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Photos courtesy of ‘The Shaolin Workout” by Shifu Shi Yan Ming